Another message from Jim Steel and Biblical Minute. Summer Outreach: "Go west, old man!" Following the time worn advice from Horace Greeley, we're heading our 176 horses (Rav4) west during July and early August.  We still have possible dates for an August Intensive in northern CA. In This Issue On the Desktop -  Another evangelistic opportunity A brand new makeover for Biblical Intensives A slice of our lives - things you may not know about us Website Overview Biblical Intensives - Our Intensive offerings and more. My New Covenant Life - For your personal or group study. Biblical Minute - Ministry ready resources. Is God Mad? - A small evangelistic effort on a large web! Thank You! Thanks to all the folks in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Nebraska who were such a blessing to us as they hosted our Spring Intensives.  We have never had such rich fellowship! For accountability, see: Breadcrumbs Ministries On the Desktop Another evangelistic tool! In 2011 the Japanese experienced a devastating earthquake. At that time, we mounted a new site related to it named www.IsGodMad.com with the intent of keeping it up for only a year. It is now, 2104 and the number of hits the site has generated has merited a serious effort to revise it for more effective use. Jim has just completed the desktop and tablet versions of the new site - (so it may be a little rough) - and we invite you to visit it on your desktop (ideal) or on your tablet.  In any case, here's what you can do... 1. Pray for the ongoing effectiveness of this new outreach effort! 2. Only if you like the site, request some (free) business sized cards. See below. These are ideal for leaving at restaurants, etc and are more easily kept in a purse or wallet than tracts. 3. The site screens multiple pages. When you see a page you particularly like, you can help us by "liking" it on Facebook. Remember, small efforts can combine for big effects and any small effort to extend the usefulness of this site is welcome! The site is new, so there are bound to be a few errors. You help immensely when you pass your observations along so we can repair them! Here is a proposed facsimile of the business card which will be ordered soon. Let us know if you want some! Website Makeover   After returning from our April-May road trip we turned our attention to badly needed web site overhauls. The Biblical Intensives site was getting far more hits for its study value than for folks looking for meetings, so we rebuilt the site to be more accommodating. We hope you will visit the new site soon, even if it's just to take a peek at our new look. Study materials are more accessible. Although you will not notice, all of our PDF files will soon be web searchable. This task will take a couple weeks, but will open our sites to more resources globally. Additionally, we hope to have a Google language translator available on our sites and we will be placing our blog more up front-and center as the Lord enables. Take a peek at the new Intensives site: A Slice of our Lives. Many folks only see the proverbial "slice" of what the Lord has been doing through our personal ministry and the extended outreach of Breadcrumbs Ministries under the oversight of Bob and Kristin Thompson. Together, we often minister to hundreds of folks in various walks of life, various spiritual states, and various localities across the U.S. and even overseas.  We carry on extended web conversations with folks in false systems, folks in bondage, folks who want to know more about the Bible, and folks with serious theological questions.  We do some reconciliation work, fill pulpits, and teach in our local church from time to time. In addition to our Intensives*, we are happy to conduct all-day Bible studies with as few as two or three persons!  As you may know, Jim has just finished writing his book which shouldn't be delayed much longer. We also produce short articles and videos from time to time. We have no interest in self promotion, but we did want to mention these things to help you pray more effectively for us. Bob and Kristin write extensively and also teach group and women's classes. They are fast extending the publishing side of Breadcrumbs. Humanly speaking, they are our ministry "rocks," who keep us going. The Future? When, and as the Lord enables, here are some of the things you can pray about. 1. For a greater, more effective web outreach at home and around the world. 2. For our first internet Bible study - under the auspices of our upcoming Internet Bible Fellowship domain. 3. Weekly, if not daily, blog presence for those inclined to receiving daily thoughts and nudges. Brethren, pray for us! * We never set a price on our ministry and desire to go wherever the Lord leads.  However, we do ask that folks who use our ministry make a special effort to announce our Intensives and encourage attendance in advance of the scheduled dates, unless, of course, we are just conducting an all-day home-based seminar.

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Evangelicalism's New Face

Evangelicalism's New Face

    (Or, Learn a lesson from the coywolf)

Photo: www.EasternCoyoteResearch.com

Rather watch than read?  Rather watch the video?.

PDF is temporarily unavailable.

The inevitable mashing of evangelicalism’s two strongest movements is well underway.   Unless we take extraordinary measures to warn and educate our children, there will be no turning back.

Evangelicalism is molting once again, and its new face is emerging while we sleep. The evidence is pervasive.  Unless the Lord graciously opens our eyes we will soon see a composite expression of  evangelicalism meld into the one unified movement perfectly suited to complement the mystery of iniquity.

While we slept a new culture was put in place.

Understand the general mood of our times. We see both evangelical and fundamental churches becoming saturated in the postmodern millennial mentality. The performance and mood driven millennial generation is increasingly incapable of separating fantasy from reality. Its distracted masses are becoming less capable of concentrating for long periods and have little inclination to embrace absolutes. It is a generation which has often masked these deficiencies by shoaling and flocking with “great” leaders, entertainers, or movements, be they in Hollywood, Washington, or in the church.  We have a duty to love and engage this distracted core. As God enables, we’ll soon post a Biblical Minute that offers genuinely helpful suggestions for engaging millennials.  Presently, we are simply acknowledging the issues which are influencing our canvass.

While we slept, the landscape changed.

In a recent Bible conference a man of God who is the world’s most well known theological conservative suggested that there are three significant classifications of believers. In his words, we are witnessing two great revivals, and between them we see an evangelical “lawn” or “landscape” of churches in yet a third group.  In his words, there is the charismatic revival, there is the reformed revival, and there are the “need driven” emotionally centered, non expositional folks who make up the broad intervening landscape, mostly in small churches.  By both direct statement and implication he would have us believe that expositional teachers may only be found in his favored group, the reformed revival. [Those who wish to dig deeper into those comments are invited to consider the following link, noticing especially minutes 3:30 to 10:00 or thereabouts: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYulTGso804.]  

That was a description of our present landscape. While this author personally would never use the term revival to describe the reformed and charismatic resurgences, he does concur that they represent two of our most dynamic evangelical  forces.  Further, to that aforementioned speaker’s shame, there remain millions (not thousands) of non reformed, non charismatics who have plenty of expositional churches among them.  Finally, while we would highly dispute that everyone else belongs in his suggested “landscape” group, we quickly agree that a large need-focused, biblically shallow movement does exist alongside the other two movements.  So, for our purposes we’ll let these three general groupings represent a good many evangelicals. Hold this thought.

While we slept a new hybrid moved into town!  

We’ll use a brief analogy to help us see how things are playing out.  Recently PBS aired a Nature episode focusing on the coywolf.  The coywolf or eastern coyote is a well documented “hybrid” which has emerged as a result of the unheard of breeding between Canadian wolves and coyotes. This was a marriage of necessity as wolves and coyotes have long been supposed natural enemies.  Until recently the coyotes were seen as a food source only.  As wolf numbers decreased, coyotes re-entered their northern territories and, to everyone’s surprise, the depreciating wolf population mated with them. The end result has been a larger, stronger, more predatory, and more intelligent beast which is very capable of thriving almost unnoticed in populated areas. It represents a blend of the best survival traits of both wolf and coyote. This aggressive coy has now spread from coast to coast and is particularly at home in our neighborhoods! A few years ago we thought such a hybrid could be impossible. Most significantly, this happened before our very eyes without our notice!
   

While we are certainly not representing anyone as wolves or coyotes, a new hybrid has arisen in evangelicalism which shares some unique parallels with the coywolf.  Like the coywolf, this hybrid was thought impossible until just a few years ago, it is a marriage of supposed opposites, it has spread across our country at a rapid pace and has gone virtually unnoticed.  Like the coywolf, it shares the strongest traits of both its parents. Unlike the remarkable coywolf, this hybridization is not of God.  

The father of this new offspring is the reformed resurgence and its mother is the charismatic resurgence.  The result is the reformed charismatic movement. We’ll refer to it as the RCM.  While its origin was seen as early as 1965 and it became more observable in the 1970’s, it is now coming into its full blush, to the chagrin of both conservative reformed leaders and conservative charismatic leaders.   

Do not underestimate the size of this movement. While leaders such as Mark Driscoll and his fellow travelers openly claim to be in the RCM, the truth is that most mega-churches are so by default. Remember, mood always precedes open declarations. The unique identifiers of each separate group are both now openly welcomed and cultivated in their mega circles.  Great segments of evangelical Christianity are already morphing into this evangelical expression.
  

Why this birthing seemed so impossible.  

Historically, blending reformed and charismatic theology, would have seemed less likely than mating a dog and a cat. (Chart below is a low resolution image. Download PDF for full image.)

How then, is this marriage between reformed and charismatics coming about?
These are only very basic comparisons, but clearly, east was east and west was west, and never the twain would meet.  The wolf with its fearful howl and the coyote with its melodious night songs were worlds apart...or so we thought.

First, understand that likes do attract. As the culture changed the new millennials began populating both reformed and charismatic camps.  This new blend was unlike their evangelical fathers who crossed doctrinal lines primarily for evangelistic purposes. The millennials were also unified by their love for music, performance, and evangelism. This millennial penchant for generational music and performance styles began dominating in both groups, simultaneously diminishing doctrinal distinctives. In fact, churches began overtly obscuring their roots and doctrinal views. Try to find what a church believes by its name! Keep in mind that millennials do want to be seen as doctrinally sound, but not as doctrinally divisive. Millennials rarely unify along doctrinal lines.  We moved doctrine down in our list of priorities, below evangelism, worship, and fellowship.
  

Equally as important, millennials in both camps have replaced their truth filters.  Understand their dilemma. There is simply too much data and too much information to assimilate, (especially when we can devote so little time to it) and so we have reverted to shoaling and flocking around our perceived experts.  We want our profiles to identify with those “experts” whom we emulate and bask in their glow.  We want our vestigial doctrinal distinctives to be delivered in sound bytes that will not interfere with worship or fellowship. Reality now resides in image, not substance.

Opposites also attract.  The cold objectivity for which the reformed have often been known has left a vacuum.  At the same time, what charismatic wants to be viewed as the emotional, non-thinking, face of Christianity?  In the RC movement, we can have a blend of opposites. We can make claims to the great theological footings of the church fathers, and still be as nurturing as a stay-at-home daddy in the nursery. Isn’t it time we brought these two extreme personas together?  In their world we can do this through common worship and celebration and we can do it in a palpable, community sensitive context.

There is no doubt in this pastor’s mind that the Reformed Charismatic Movement will be the dominant force in evangelicalism as it moves toward its final expression. And, in the end, it will morph in the direction of more “spirituality” and less biblical exposition than ever before.  But this dangerous hybrid is to be feared for more than its eventual contribution to the ecumenical movement.
   

The Danger is Real 
Some may see this new offspring as a beautiful thing, combining the strengths of reformed thinking with the warmth and vitality of the charismatic movement.  The problem is that we have also amplified the negative trait of both parents.  This hybrid is more dangerous to the soul than either of the extremes it represents.
   

If  reformed and charismatic theology were packaged and found together on the store shelf, we would assume they were exact opposites. However, we might miss the point that both packages contain the same active ingredients.  By noticing what these two movements have in common we can protect ourselves from some dangerous carcinogens. These ingredients are always found together.

First, there is the matter of works based thinking that nullifies the doctrine of pure biblical grace.  Both reformed and charismatic systems are pregnant with performance based thinking.  The Bible states simply and clearly,

“And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” - Romans 11:6.  

The number one enemy of the church has been with us since the days of Paul. It is represented by those who would mix works back into the grace formula.  Paul rebuked the Galatians with the strong words: “Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” - Gal 3:3.  Salvation is by grace alone, (Ephesians 2:8,9) and sanctification is by grace alone.  Both function on the same faith dynamic. We are saved once and for all by appropriating the promise of God, and we are victorious in our Christian walk by the one and same process.  We appropriate the promises of God as we reckon ourselves already dead unto sin and alive unto God (Rom. 6:11).

Here is the short of it:  Works never produce grace. Grace always produces works. Victory is always the result of appropriating what God has provided.  The grace which saves us (Ephesians 2:8,9) is the grace which creates us unto good works (Eph. 2:10). Where grace does not abound, bondage in one form or another follows
.  

The Calvinist says otherwise.  Of course, he believes grace saves, but in his mind, we are not saved simply by agreeing with God about our sin and appropriating His promise for salvation by faith.  The Calvinist says we must own the Lordship of Christ completely, we must surrender every aspect of our life to Christ completely, and count the cost  - before being saved.  Not only are those acts impossible, they leave us hopelessly wondering if we really are one of God’s elect.  Have I repented enough?  And if I fall into sin and do not persevere for a given amount of time, was I really saved?  Any time we mix works into the grace formula we nullify grace. No pure Calvinist can say with absolute certainty that he is one of God’s elect because he does not know if he will fall. Thus he works to assure himself of his election.  Such a man is in bondage to fear.

The charismatic also says otherwise. Like the Calvinist he believes we are saved by grace through faith, but in his mind, grace is like an umbrella that we can step out from under.  We can lose our salvation by sinning.  Again, we’re never told how much sinning this requires (and charismatics differ among themselves regarding this), but the majority of them agree, we can forfeit our salvation, our new life in Christ, our position in Christ, and our sonship by willful disobedience.  In short, though we are saved by faith we must maintain our salvation by works.

Friend, as long as you are wondering (with the Calvinist) if you really were saved, if you are really saved now, or (with the charismatic) if you may soon fall and lose your salvation, you are not basing your faith on the clear and certain promises of God.  You are in bondage to fear.  Satan wants you neutralized. He wants you to know how unqualified you really are.  Friend, your only merit is in Christ and in the righteousness He gives.  You can do nothing to qualify for it, keep it, or lose it.  When you fall into sin He will deal with you, but he will never forsake you.  Confess your sin and get on with claiming the promises of God and let the grace of God work through you and you will find true victory in Christ.

It’s time to come out!

Why is this hybrid so dangerous?  Because it has moved into our neighborhoods.  Further, these ingredients may be in your yard.  For instance, if your pastor says he is reformed in his soteriology (doctrine of salvation) but dispensational in his eschatology (doctrine of future events) you are pointing down a dangerous path toward a works based system. Five point Calvinism has been subtly imported into dispensational circles in both the Baptist and Bible church movements.  At the same time, if your church is known for its performance based ministry and the expositional teaching of God’s Word is secondary to that, you are in even deeper trouble.

The Bible has much to say about generational values and every generation is tested.  Your test, dear millennial, has to do with your willingness to let the Bible speak, to embrace it openly, to stand on the pure doctrines of God’s Word, and not to be swept along with highly popular generational values.

Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
Proverbs 20:1

Fundamentalist Snake Charming

Especially for pastors and leaders...

Recently a good friend of mine, Bruce Oyen posted a warning about the use of alcohol.  It brought to mind the sad statistics I read last week regarding the use of alcohol among Christian pastors and leaders, much less their congregations. That, in turn, brought to mind the young men I have personally buried as a result of this scourge. This flashback evoked memories of the half naked and hungry children we shuttled into our Sunday School buses (when it was still socially acceptable to run bus routes) and the long trail of counseling and admonitions relating to the abuse, scandal, and destruction this scourge brings. That, in turn, evoked my last provocative thought:

Surely, any pastor who labors in the trenches must hate alcohol in his very soul. Notwithstanding all those debates about the wine at Cana, we all know that we are not comparing apples with apples when we use Cana to justify the modern use of alcohol. While we rightfully bemoan the effects of tobacco and second hand smoke, our duplicity is overwhelming and our silence is deafening.  And, those who insist that alcoholism is a disease must still admit that it is contracted on the lip of the glass, a glass we Christians complacently hand off to our children when they "come of age."  Alcohol is the scourge we refuse to see, exacting a horrific toll on the “church” and the world. It is another elephant in room, affecting a shocking number of families in our own Christian circles.

• We do not see the consequences of this scourge because we refuse to see it. We prefer to close our minds to the daily toll this substance takes right before our very eyes.

• We don’t see the danger, because we blithely think that our drinking in moderation will spare us (and our children for generations to come) from going down that same path. Yet the facts prove otherwise.  The flood waters may still be up river, but sooner or later they arrive and this dancing viper will strike someone you love.  Pray to God that the first missteps of their downfall will not be at your hands.

• We don’t see the danger, because to stand against alcohol is to be labeled as a legalistic vestige of a bygone era. Perish the thought that our legalistic fathers could have been lovingly warning us against the things they saw, firsthand!

• Mostly, we choose to ignore this issue because we kowtow to a peer driven culture which professes tolerance to all (except those who would warn against evil). The thin veneer suggesting that our motives are evangelistic, is just that.  One can be as wise as a serpent without dancing with one.

The fear of man brings a snare (Proverbs 29:25), and few snares are as damning as alcohol.

It’s time we let our blood boil with a little more indignation instead of boiling with the inebriating bubbles that portend destruction. It’s time we stepped away from snake charming.

Pastor, when was the last time you warned your sheep about this scourge? Are you willing to face the truth about the use of alcohol among your sheep?

The next time you think of those supposed snake charmers, ask yourself, “Who’s really charming whom?”

Take a few seconds and read Bruce Oyen’s blog on this vital subject.

For a good biblical treatment, read Bob Thompson’s paper on alcohol.
Wine and Strong Drink.pdf

See also:

Forty Percent of Evangelical Leaders Drink Alcohol


Moody Drops Alcohol Use Restriction for Faculty and Staff


Need an inexpensive and basic tract on this subject?

Fundamentalists Who Think Like Modernists

Fundamentalists Who Think Like Modernists

(or, How to keep the ministry from ruining your ministry)

Note: This article is geared especially for pastors.

The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. 1 Peter 5:1-5

When we claim that a high percentage of fundamentalist pastors reason and process like modernists we are not referring to theological modernism. Rather, we are referring to the modernist period in our history. Though philosophical modernism is officially dead (having been replaced by its horrific successor, postmodernism) the fact remains that many fundamentalists still process modernistically.

Philosophical modernism was committed to the assumption that progress and success are both good and desirable. In a similar vein, many churches and pastors are convinced that the growth of their institutions are the ultimate proof that the blessings of God are on their ministry. Ministry models which evidence these values abound. Transitioning tools are widely observable, and the practice of charting our institutional courses from a team driven perspective has been eisegetically declared to be the biblical pattern.

In retrospect, these values can readily produce wood, hay, and stubble (1 Cor. 3:12) because they are akin to fleshly temple building practices. Nowhere in the Bible are we commanded to lay hold by faith on a desirable future for our churches. Our churches are to be built on biblically based agricultural and temple building dynamics (1 Cor. 3:6-10), not modernistic business models. The chief ministry model was provided by our Chief Shepherd who built up disciples, not ministry teams. Elders who feed and nurture Christ’s sheep, all the while, seeking, caring for them, praying for them, and guiding them and disciplining them are the ultimate examples of the biblical church growth models.

When we apply biblical ministry principles, we truly are relying on the promises of God (Jas. 5:7) as we patiently wait for the fruit which God has promised while applying His principles. We are not relying on growth dynamics regurgitated second hand from Harvard Business School.

We are not suggesting that churches should not plan and organize ministry. Corporate ministries, raised up by the Spirit in accordance with the gifts and abilities of Christ’s sheep synergistically leverage the energies of God’s people for Christ. Rather, we are arguing that such ministries are not the end. The sheep are the end. Unless there is direct and immediate care for each of Christ’s sheep within the flock, our institutional creations will surely take on a life of their own and ultimately succumb to the same boom and bust cycles that all businesses experience.

While the paste and glitter of institutionally centered ministries may attract many, few durable jewels will be found in the day of testing. The organization found in Acts six represented a proactive response to a present need. The care and feeding of the sheep had been precluded by logistics. The move to delegate through godly deacons was never intended to be the seed from which great institutional machines would grow. Rather, it was to protect the intimate nurturing of Christ’s sheep.

Personal, one on one shepherding is a difficult and challenging vocation and yet it is basic to all others. The pastor will always find that preaching, organizational duties, and a myriad of similar ministry opportunities will quickly and easily supplant this most important of all ministry tasks.

Pastor and elder friends, have you picked up the phone today, made a visit or touched anyone on a personal basis? If you haven’t, you may just be missing your true calling. We may not excuse ourselves by excelling in the things we love to do while ignoring the lamb. The vortex of institutional (modernistic) thinking comes uninvited and will always be ready to suck up our available ministry time.

“Perpetual Care” shouldn’t be limited to cemeteries! Consider a few good habits to help keep the ministry from hindering your ministry

• Consider praying for your sheep before praying for the respective ministries of your church.
• When you pray, ask the Lord to help you observe the spiritual and ministry states of each of Christ’s sheep, considering proactive steps to nudge each one forward in growth and ministry.
• Consider making at least one contact per day by visit, phone, email, or note.
• When organizing your formal ministry keep people first, programs second, and properties third, making sure that personal attention to the spiritual lives of your people is every leader’s first priority.
• In short, develop ministry habits that ensure every member of your fellowship has proper and perpetual spiritual care and attention.

He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep. - John 21:17

About our content...

From time to time Jim posts material in mailers which folks ask for at a later time.  Rather than creating a web page on a specified site (a time consuming challenge) they are posted here.  Jim also plans to include other notes and comments which may (or NOT) take on a life of their own on one of our Breadcrumbs Ministries sites.

Thanks for scanning!